Ohana Means Family
by AnonymousDuo
Summary: And family means nobody gets left behind. Or forgotten. But family ties aren't always easy to keep, especially with the Cahills. From Arthur's POV, what really happened the night of the fire? The night Arthur became a Vesper.


**Okay hi sorry but I just read the last two books of Cahills vs Vespers and let me tell you THE SERIES HAS BEEN STUCK IN MY HEAD IT WON'T GO AWAY so this is my attempt at a one-shot xD**

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_Ohana Means Family_

"Daddy!" Amy screamed. She held out her arms and he stopped for a second.

"Angel," he said, "go with Mommy."

Arthur continued to toss books down on the floor as Hope pulled their screaming daughter away, all the while praying that his family would get out safely.

Tears brimmed in his eyes, only partly due to the smoke. He hadn't thought... Never in his wildest dreams could he have imagine that the Cahills would set fire to a house with innocent _children_ in it.

_Hope's family._

His fists curled and he punched the bookshelf in frustration. No doubt one of the lying, scheming Cahills had gotten to the poem before him. A hacking cough turned into a violent sob, as he desperately threw books to the floor almost manically.

After all he had done for the Cahills, _all_ he had given up. _This_ was how they repaid him?

Even the Madrigals wouldn't accept him! And he was one of their top agents.

He shook the shelf in a rage, letting out all his frustration and grief.

What if Hope didn't survive this?

What if the kids didn't survive this?

Hope...

He came to a decision in a split second and made to move away from the bookshelf. He was not going to be a Cahill and sacrifice everything he held dear for a piece of _paper_.

He hadn't moved a few steps when the bookshelf came crashing down on him, too fast for him to react.

In a split second Arthur was pinned to the floor by the arm, and he screamed in pain as the burning booksheld seared into his flesh.

With a deft movement, he yanked his arm out, moaning in pain as he did so. Averting his eyes from the long burn, he struggled to his feet. All thoughts of the clue were forgotten. He could only form one coherent thought- to get _out_!

"Hope!" He yelled hoarsely, stumbling through piles of falling furniture. "Hope!"

"Arthur!" He heard a faint answering call.

Faster than lightning, Arthur whipped his head around to see the faint outline of his wife's figure. Relief flooded through him and it was as though he were in love all over again.

Before he even realised what was happening, fate dealt a cruel blow in the form of a sudden increase in the fire. The last things Arthur Trent heard from his wife's mouth were her screams as the flames engulfed her.

And just like that, she was lost to him forever.

It was all happening too fast, and Arthur was trying to slow things down, but the rush was crowding his head and the smoke was making him giddy. His head was too fuzzy to think straight, so he resorted to his basic instincts- to survive.

Shoving through the debris, he navigated his way for what seemed like hours, until he finally collapsed through a side window. He lay panting, unintentionally obscured by the foliage that was slowly blackening at the edges, threatening to burst into flame at any moment.

An inhuman sound of mourning escaped him as he realised... Hope was gone. He was never going to see her bright smile, or her bright jade eyes, her reddish hair...

Red hair.

Red flames.

"Murder." Arthur thought viciously. " ."

The Cahills had murdered his wife in cold blood, and the gods only knew if his children were safe.

He had been a fool to ever trust them.

To ever believe in them.

To ever believe that they would accept him.

To ever seek acceptance.

"They must have lied about the Vespers." His thoughts were rearranging themselves now that he was out of the smoke, but they were still disorganised and jostling into random slots. "They lied about everything- it was all a lie!"

Hell wasn't the place he had left.

Hell was the place he was going to leave.

A minute later, a man slipped away, unnoticed in the commotion and the crowd.

He was no longer Arthur Trent, husband of Hope Cahill, father of two children.

Hope Cahill was dead.

The two children were orphans.

He was Arthur Trent, Vesper.

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**Okay that was basically a mess that I needed to write to clear up my head. I know, I know, it's not great. But I really needed to write that down.**

**Personally, I believe that the fire must have driven Arthur insane in some way, because there is no way that happy, cheerful father could turn into... Vesper One.**

**Your thoughts?**

**Leave a review PLEASE :D**


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